Interview With Social Entrepreneur & Keerapa Active’s Co-Founder, David Amekpor

1- Hello David, can you please tell us a bit about you?

David Amekpor is a Social Entrepreneur, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts & currently the Business Development Manager of Maxy Group of Companies & runs Hoteliers, a Forex Bureau and a Travel Consulting Agency. David holds a diploma in Healthcare Management from the famous Reid Kerr College in Glasgow, Scotland. David has worked with some of the world’s largest and most commercially successful organisations, including Fox/Sky Lloyds Banking Group, Allied Healthcare, UNESCO, WHO, and UNICEF.

I am a passionate footballer who plays at least every Saturday at a bare ground pitch in Accra.

My long term goal is to build sport & recreational complexes across Africa.

2- What are your focus areas and why?

Just as we can’t have an educated people if we do not have good schools, universities, libraries, and museums, we can’t have successful athletes and a thriving sports world if we don’t have good sports academies and infrastructure. That’s true all over the world, but, in the case of Ghana, that’s even truer—namely in the case of football. My passion to bring sports and recreation to all has led to the desire to provide a space, in Ghana, where grassroots football, competitive leagues & recreational features could flourish.

This has led to the birth of KEERAPA ACTIVE after extensive research into similar facilities across Europe.

3- How would you describe “Keerapa Active” in few words?

Keerapa Active is a new sports and leisure startup, working to put quality but affordable facilities, within the reach of Ghana’s athletes and amateur football players.

4- Where do you think it’s making an impact?

We have commissioned a corporate social impact study, which has been planned for months but now has started.

We believe that by helping the local footballing community succeed, Keerapa will be contributing to the wider national community and its success on the football field. By developing and delivering local facilities for the Accra area, Keerapa will be taking part in the global drive to cut emissions and combat climate change. All facilities will be developed with environmental concerns foremost. Keerapa will be satisfying a national demand for quality sports and leisure facilities. Exercise has proven health benefits. By providing facilities to exercise, Keerapa will be contributing to the public health of Accra.

Keerapa will be creating real, full-time sustainable employment for up to 6 staff members initially, with the potential for more dependent on the growth of the business. Keerapa will be in a position to capitalize on the global interest in five-a-side football.

5- Do you think “Integrity” is an essential part of the game?

I think Integrity is the most important attribute in an effective leader.Thankfully, our values are driven by the name “Keerapa” which comes from an adinkra symbol in Ghana called – Mmusuyideɛ” meaning ‘that which cleanses and removes bad luck’– and it symbolises: sanctity and good fortune.

In the last three years or so, we have seen a major shake-up in the sporting world both locally and internationally and it’s important that we uphold these values in order to stay relevant.

6- What can you tell young creative entrepreneurs who are pursuing their dreams?

You’re going to make mistakes and that’s ok. People are going to give up on you and that’s ok. But remember that that dream you carry is for an appointed time and though it might delay, it will surely come to pass so keep believing in yourself, keep pushing hardest and never ever give up!

7- How do you see the future of entrepreneurship in the next 10 years?

Every single day, I hear of great innovators springing up all over, finding solutions to our everyday problems. It’s frustrating for most entrepreneurs in Africa for example, Yes! And there may even be a silver lining.

8- Do you find as an expert, that you enjoy the challenge of an industry being complex and the game rules are always changing?

It’s always a challenging and changing world. I believe that the following approach mitigates the potential threats posed whilst maximizing opportunities for positive outcomes to be achieved.Firstly, I have taken steps to put a network of expert advisors in place, with a range of experience and credentials which would make them welcome at any top table in Africa or beyond.

These advisors maintain awareness of past interventions, learning from the history of state involvement in relevant sectors, and foster a climate of expert knowledge and contextual awareness about the current climate in markets where I am involved now and projected to be in future.

Secondly, intervention need not be a wholly negative experience. It is never as clear cut as that. With every obstacle, there is an opportunity waiting to be realized. Where interventions seem likely, they will already have been anticipated, mitigated against, and plans laid to extract opportunities of sector access and networking which state contact and potential involvement bring.

9- What are you most excited about at the moment?

I am looking forward to launching my Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign on Wednesday, the 23/01/2019 to raise funds for my first facility and that excites me a lot!

10- The last word or final thoughts?

I really want this to work as a facility that leads by example. If I can successfully create such a facility and prove that an individual coming from Ghana’s civil society can create world-class-level sports infrastructure, then I hope I can inspire other groups in other parts of Ghana or the world to do the same—whether by joining me or taking a cue from what I do and replicating the model.

is a 28-year-old student at the Manitoba University, and the Content Marketing Manager at MXXVMEDIA, a fresh new digital agency specifically designed to cater to the needs and budgets of startups and SMEs.

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